未知死 焉知生 韓國人活着躺進棺材

SEOUL, South Korea — Did you ever wonder what it would be like to be at your own funeral? Some South Koreans aren’t waiting to die to find out.

韓國首爾——你有沒有想過參加自己的葬禮會是什麼感覺？一些韓國人不想等到死後才知道。

It’s become a trend in recent years to act out a mock funeral service as a way of better appreciating life.

爲了更珍惜現在的生活，模擬殯儀服務近年流行起來。

The Hyowon Healing Center in Seoul runs one such program, with financial backing from a funeral service company.

首爾孝圓康復中心(Hyowon Healing Center)就開設了這樣一個項目，並得到一家殯儀服務公司的資金支持。

After an instructional lecture and video, participants are led into a dimly lit hall decorated with chrysanthemums, where they sit, often tearfully, beside caskets and write their last testaments.

參與者在參加了教學講座、觀看了視頻之後，被帶到一個裝點着菊花的昏暗大廳，他們坐在棺材旁邊，常常眼淚汪汪地寫下他們的最後遺囑。

Then they put on burial shrouds and lie down in the coffins.

然後穿上壽衣，躺進棺材。

A grim-looking man dressed in a black robe, the Envoy from the Other World, hammers the lids closed.

一個表情嚴峻的男人穿着黑色長袍，扮演來自另外一個世界的使者，他把棺材蓋上。

The participants are left encased in utter darkness for 10 minutes — which can feel like an eternity.

參與者在完全的黑暗中度過10分鐘——有時候感覺很久很久。

There was not a single ray of light coming in, and how I cried in the dark, suffocating coffin! a recent participant wrote in a blog post.

裏面沒有一絲光線，我在黑暗中哭泣，棺材令人窒息！一個參與者最近在一篇博客帖子中寫道。

Jeong Yong-mun, the director of the Hyowon program, said 15,000 people had gone through mock funerals at the center since 2012.

孝圓項目主任鄭永門（音）說，自2012年以來，有1.5萬人參與了該中心的模擬葬禮。

The program is free.

該體驗是免費的。

Some participants had terminal illnesses and wanted help preparing for the end; others had suicidal impulses that they wanted to dispel.

一些人患有絕症，希望參加這個項目有助於爲死亡做準備；還有些人有自殺衝動，想要打消這種念頭。

Businesses send employees as part of a motivational program.

一些企業也把這個項目作爲員工激勵計劃的一部分。

At the end of the two-and-a-half-hour session, Mr Jeong tells the participants: Now, you have shed your old self.

在兩個半小時的體驗即將結束時，鄭永門會告訴參與者：現在，你已經不再是以前的你了。

You are reborn to have a fresh start! It takes a few minutes for them to readjust, but soon they are chatting, laughing and taking selfies with their coffins.

你獲得了重生，有了一個新的開始！參加者通常會花幾分鐘的時間調整情緒，但很快，他們就會開始交談、歡笑，並與他們的棺材自拍。

Mr Jeong said he keeps an eye out for the few morbid souls who seem to feel a little too comfortable in the coffin.

鄭永門說，他會留意極少數的病態者，他們似乎覺得在棺材裏很舒服。

But most participants say they feel strangely refreshed afterward, gaining a new perspective on the things that matter in life, like family.

但是大多數參與者都表示在體驗結束後，有一種奇怪的煥然一新的感覺，對生活中的重要組成部分有了新的視角，比如對家庭。

I feel my heart pumping, one participant wrote in a blog post, where she confessed to having thought about suicide before the mock funeral service.

我感覺到自己的心在跳，一個參與者在一篇博客帖子中寫道，她承認在體驗模擬殯儀服務之前曾考慮自殺。

I am alive!

我還活着！